Buffalo -> Toronto
Highlight
- I thought today would be an easy day, being holiday and all, but no, everyone showed up at work.
- Didn’t get to leave until past 4pm, and then waited 20 minutes in the shuttle for Andrew anyway.
- Went to gym, packed, and then went quite early to the bus station in case.
- Well, no need for that since the bus was running more than 1 hour late.
- Luckily, after that there were no delays. We got through customs relatively quickly
Food
- Casa di Pizza steak pizza
- Doubletree breakfast:
- cranberry and grape juice
- Fresh Fruit Cup
- blueberry muffin
- Duck curry
Buffalo
Highlight
- Had to update rules some more, but after that, got a relive from testing…etc. So got a chance to catch up on all my other work, thank goodness.
- Made it to the farmers market during a break from the rain. It was really cool. Not that big, but I managed to pick up a few things, and we sat in the sun with our hot dogs and caught the end of the daily music.
- Went inside some of the buildings, and got myself an ice-cream sundae from the Charlie the Butchers stall.
- Tried to go to Bistro Europa, but found out it was closed, so made do with Casa di Pizza across the street. As soon as I sat down and looked around, I knew I had made a mistake. Every single person eating there was severely overweight…
- The pizza I got, as expected, was really thick and loaded with cheese – but tasted really bland. Maybe I ordered wrong or something but it was so disgusting. I managed to eat about half of the smallest size I could get.
- Watched the exciting Wimbledon semi before doing the laundry and going to bed.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- Fresh Fruit Cup
- Corn Muffin
- hot dog with mustard, ketchup, pickle and onions($1.50)
- Charlie the Butcher Mexican Ice Cream Sundae($4.35)
- raspberry, peach, blueberry and cherry cream cheese cookies.($4)
- Casa di Pizzadinner:
- Steak pizza ($15 small) – light olive oil based, grated romano, fresh tomatoes, spinach, onions, thin sliced rib eye steak, topped with Monterey jack, cheddar and mozzarella
Buffalo
Highlight
- So the problems start again, and I spent all morning running around trying to solve it.
- They were celebrating Wimbledon…and I miss out on all the fun, but did get to have really sweet strawberries and cream. Could’ve had my picture taken with the Wimbledon trophy but didn’t want to line up.
- Then spent all afternoon doing stupid mapping rules and my brain turned to mush.
- Another long day because we were finally going to Mothers. I had heard such good things about it, but read reviews about how the service was crap. Well, the place was so weird! The waiters were really bad, they just ignore you all the time, and don’t deliver. The restaurant has an intimate setting, but they turn the music up really loud and the tables are really close to one another.
- The food – appetisers were good, the soup was so,so, and the mains had nice potatoes. The lamb was tasty, but was really fatty, and wasn’t cooked to order. I ordered medium well, but it was much closer to medium. Good thing they gave you a lot, so I could leave all the red bits.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- HC Baked Blueberry French Toast: 2 slices of French toast baked with light cream cheese, blueberries, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, light sour cream and fat-free yogurt. Topped with confectioner sugar and maple syrup ($8.95)
- salad with roasted vegetables, Asian dressing, cucumber
- strawberries and cream
- Mothers dinner:
- bread with butter
- St Louis ribs with mustard sauce and coleslaw
- Sausage stuffed portabello mushroom
- mushroom and asparagus soup
- 8 oz lamb chops with masala wine sauce, green beans and roast potatoes
Buffalo
Highlight
- Wow, a day without any major problems! Amazing.
- Spent all day doing admin work and it went so slowly.
- Decided to eat healthy today after feeling so sick from Subway.
- Andrew decided he wanted to go out afterall, so we sat outside, while the weather was nice, at the Saigon Café. The food was not as good as last time, I found both the soup and the duck sauce too sweet, but the duck itself was very flavoursome.
- Got a call back from the GM about my “problem”. They just apologised and said it won’t happen again, but didn’t offer me any sort of compensation.
- Watched Family Guy on Andrew’s recommendation and then to bed.
Food
- Aroma cannoli with chocolate chips and pistachio
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- Fresh Fruit Cup
- Kellogg’s Smart Start flakes and oat cereal
- Vegetable Lo Mein, Sweet & Sour Chicken, Beef & Broccoli
- Saigon Café dinner:
- Tom Yum Goong ($3.75) - Fresh shrimp & shiitake mushrooms in hot and sour broth, garnished with scallions and Thai basil
- Thai Duck ($13.95) - Grilled marinated duck breast topped with stir-fried onions, red and green peppers, pineapples, fresh ginger in our tamarind sauce served with steamed asparagus
- young coconut juice
Buffalo
Highlight
- I had a very good sleep so wasn’t that tired, ready to face another day.
- Luckily didn’t have too many issues today so got a bit of work done.
- Had Subway again because nothing in the canteen appealed, but bad mistake. I felt so bloated and so sleepy I couldn’t concentrate all afternoon.
- Didn’t need to entertain for dinner again, so went out to try the Italian…I was actually a bit stuffed full of carbs, but what the heck, the pastas all sounded very appealing.
- Food was ok, not anything special, but I did managed to score myself a free cannoli since they had run out of ingredients for more so they gave me one for free.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- Pancakes: Stack of three buttermilk pancakes served with fresh berries and whipped cream ($7.95)
- Subway sweet onion chicken teriyaki ($5.20)
- Aroma dinner:
- bread with olive oil and balsamic
- Rigatoni with pulled pork, sweet corn and peas in a cream sauce ($17)
Buffalo -> Niagara Falls -> Buffalo
Highlight
- The sky looked clear this morning when I looked out, so I decided to risk it and go to the falls…maybe it won’t rain until the afternoon.
- Caught the 40 bus again, and arrived by 10am. Pretty much as soon as I got there, the skys opened, and started raining pretty much non-stop the whole day.
- Walked across Rainbow Bridge to the Canadian side. It was really easy, and no problems at all.
- Well, the Canadian side definitely has better views, and better facilities set up for tourists…but it was also more gimmicky and lacked the natural appeal of the US side. I think it’s good to go to both sides actually.
- Bought myself an adventure pass, which included the excellent Maid of the Mist, where you board the boat and go under the falls, and get really wet. It was really fun.
- The Niagara Fury was a 4D movie experience, aimed at kids, but was entertaining and told you a little about the falls.
- Journey Behind the Falls was really crap. You go into these tunnels and end up, yes, behind the falls. But you wait for ages to peek behind this little hole, and all you can see is a gush of water, not really something you want to pay a lot of money for.
- Whitewater walk was also stupid. It’s basically for a chance to view the rapids up close – as in you can catch a lift and walk on a boardwalk, instead of having to rough it if you want to do the same thing for free on the US side. I guess since I was being careful, it was a better choice.
- Spent ages walking around doing all the different stuff, took a load of photos, even though the weather was gloomy and mostly wet.
- Had a nice frozen yoghurt for lunch, because I couldn’t really face pizza or burger after that big breakfast.
- One of the nice things I did visit was the Floral display, which was pretty much in full bloom at this time of year.
- Even managed to visit the gimmicky tourist stores to try some fudge at the Herseys store.
- Spent about 1.5 hrs on the US side, while waiting to catch my bus back. Quickly caught all the views from last time, and it was certainly a lot more busy, but after all the time on the Canada side, the view was not really anything to be wowed over.
- In the end, had to run for the bus, and only just made it.
- Decided to eat some meat, so went to Nektar, which was very quiet, as usual, on a Sunday night. The food was very good though, the meat came pink…which on other occasions I would love, but I didn’t get to eat it all. Which was probably good since they gave me so much food.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast buffet:
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
- Scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, potatoes
- Asiago bagel with vegetable cream cheese spread
- Yogen Fruz raspberry, mango and pineapple frozen yoghurt ($5.60)
- Nektar dinner:
- bread with balsamic and olive oil
- Pork tenderloin in mustard sauce with cabbage, smashed sweet potatoes ($19)
Buffalo
Highlight
- The weather was beautiful today. Did some research in the morning, then headed to Ambrosia for a break from the Doubletree breakfast.
- Walked along Elmwood Street, but not all the shops were opened yet. There were a few quirky and interesting gems, but otherwise nothing special.
- Checked out Bidwell Parkway farmers market, which was excellent. There weren’t too many stalls but at least they were different. I managed to pick up some jam and apples, as well as Buffalo wing sauce for souvenirs. Also taste tested some sorbet and had a yoghurt drink.
- Joined the free housing tour, which was very boring because the people on it kept asking the most boring questions. Who wants to know about painting techniques and marketing about a nusery.
- If they had kept to the itinerary it would have been good – visiting old house conversion, an old school conversion, as well as an alternative café was just up my alley really, too bad the execution was bad. Oh well, can’t complain since it was free.
- Spent the afternoon walking down the rest of Elmwood, to Delaware Park. Walked by the river a bit and watched the canoes as well as all the weddings taking place.
- Asked to get picked up by the shuttle, stupid Garrett at the front desk made a mistake, so I got stranded there for 1.5 hours.
- Afterwards I wanted an apology, but the manager in charge, Donna, and Garrett were both really rude.
- I got so mad I went back and wrote loads of complaint letters and left messages for the GM. Unfortunately it was Saturday, so no one was working, also, couldn’t change hotel either.
- Andrew piked again for dinner, so I went to Wasabi, seeing he doesn’t like fish. I couldn’t eat the raw stuff, but I did manage to get some nice cooked sushi. Certainly much better, and cheaper, than eating at the hotel.
Food
- Ambrosia breakfast:
- gyro, scrambled eggs, pita, feta cheese and smashed potatoes
- orange juice
- white cow diary lemon drink ($2.25)
- taste test sorbet, chilli sauce, jams
- Sweetness 7 Café:
- raspberry, strawberry and banana smoothie ($4.15)
- Wasabi dinner:
- Miso Soup ($1.75) Tofu, seaweed and scallion in light soybean paste soup
- Age Tofu ($4.50) - Crispy breaded tofu fried to perfection.
- Spider roll ($9.50) - Fried soft shell crab, avocado, lettuce, cucumber and tobiko topped with mayonnaise and sweet eel sauce.
- Scorpion roll ($9.50) - Broiled eel and avocado on top of a shrimp tempura roll.
Buffalo
Highlight
- Another problem filled day at work, and wanted to relax because it was Friday as well!
- Got held up at work, and then had to wait ages for the shuttle again, so didn’t make it to Albright Knox until very late, about 8:15. There were a few people dining at Muse still, but unfortunately, it was also the day for the NHL draft party, so the menu was hockey themed, which I didn’t liket at all.
- Nevertheless, the food arrived super quick, so I was able to finish dinner before 9pm and still have some time to browse the gallery.
- There were a few gems, along them good pop art and 60s album cover display, and a small selection of Modern classics from the Masters. I also enjoyed the exhibition on Frida Khao.
- Managed to almost finish the whole gallery before I got picked up, only having to rush the last few pieces. So all in all, a good visit.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- Fresh Fruit Cup ($3.25)
- HC Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal ($2.25) with banana
- fish sandwich, coleslaw, carrots and broccoli
- Muse dinner:
- Buffalo chicken Wing Chowder ($6)
- Fresh P.E.I Mussels steamed in Canadian Beer with crispy bacon and cheddar, caramelized onion ($10)
Buffalo
Highlight
- Tired again after the late night last night, so didn’t get up and go to gym.
- The weather started turning bad, with bad storm.
- Lots of issues at work, so worked like a dog.
- Managed to not go into the canteen – which was a good thing.
- Finally got out of there before 7pm, went to the grocery store and picked up some Palmers stuff and also got some chips and chocolates that are only available in America.
- Didn’t go out for dinner as I wanted to go to the gym and also do my laundry.
- Since I was so full from Subway I didn’t eat until 9pm, so had to eat at the hotel again. The food was so-so, but I really need to get out!
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Breakfast Wrap: Scrambled eggs, bacon and cheddar cheese in a flour tortilla($6.25)
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- Subway lunch:
- 6” meatball sub
- lemon iced tea
- white macadamia cookie
- oatmeal and raisin cookie
- Doubletree dinner:
- bread with butter
- Mediterranean Salad Chicken Scallopini – Grilled Chicken Breast in a Lemon Caper Sauce, with Rice Pilaf, Asparagus
Buffalo
Highlight
- Slept relatively well, nearly 8 hours.
- Even managed to do a quick session at the gym beforehand, so it meant that I can go out late tonight.
- Was going to go for a walk since the weather was so nice and hot, but got piled with a whole bunch of work to do, so couldn’t go out, and even had to eat lunch at the canteen again.
- Had to stay at work v late again since going to Manav’s for food so had to wait…don’t want to work such long hours.
- Finally made it there – he has a big house with a big backyard, like most people in Buffalo.
- It was nice weather to have a bbq, Indian style actually.
- They were so rowdy, and drank so much and danced, and all tried to force me to drink as well. It was difficult to refuse.
- Ended up being the first to leave but still didn’t get back to the hotel until 11:15, and didn’t get to bed until 12.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Raisin bagel with cream cheese
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- Fresh Fruit Cup ($3.25)
- turkey, tomato lettuce and cheese sandwich
- apple juice
- chicken gumbo soup
- BBQ:
- chicken tikka kebab
- capsicum and mushroom kebab
- Angus cheeseburger
- chickpea salad
- tacos and dip
- orange juice
Buffalo
Highlight
- Worst jet-lag ever, but probably because I slept so early the night before, so I woke up at 3am.
- Ended up going for breakfast very early (omelette was so bland, maybe I chose the wrong stuff) and going to work early.
- Got the shuttle to work, which was nice and convenient.
- Work was a bummer…food was not appealing at the canteen as usual.
- Worked until 7pm, then Andrew told me he didn’t want to go out.
- So I tried to book a shuttle to drive me out, but they somehow mucked up, so I ended up having to wait another 15 minutes.
- By that time I was so hungry I really didn’t want to have to travel out, so I ate at the hotel instead.
- The front desk guy felt sorry for me so my meal was on the house – which really didn’t benefit me at all…and I couldn’t complain when my food arrived so slowly since my meal was already free.
- Good thing though that the food was very nice, as opposed to breakfast.
- This also meant that I wasted enough time and was able to get to bed at 10pm instead of 8pm.
Food
- Doubletree breakfast:
- Mushroom & Cheese Omelet with Swiss cheese ($7.95)
- Wholemeal Toast with Strawberry Jam
- Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice ($2.25)
- pitta bread with chicken, cucumber, tomato, artichoke, olives and pepper on raita sauce
- grapefruit juice
- Doubletree dinner:
- clam chowder with bread
- Mediterranean Chicken Salad marinated chicken served atop a bed of greens with feta cheese, black olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions and greek dressing
London -> Toronto -> Buffalo
Highlight
- Well, very happy with the new journey into Heathrow, around 50 mins door to door, can’t complain about that.
- Not very impressed by BA, as usual. Believe it or not, they now have even less food than their already sorry state! No more bacon or mushroom rolls, no more muffins, instead there’s only toast. The massage therapist was different again, a woman this time, and she was the best yet.
- Another v old plane, just my luck. Of course there was no entertainment on demand and I had seen just about every movie they had on offer. I only watched Anvil, the story of Anvil (it was good!) and that was it.
- At least they changed the wash bag and the menu though, so I got to try something different…although it wasn’t tasty. I left half my fish as it tasted like cardboard.
- Didn’t manage to bump into Andrew until we got off the plane, thank goodness.
- We had Joe again to drive us. I like him. We had to wait 45 mins to get across the border though.
- Doubletree is worst than the Hilton Garden Inn…but the shuttle service will be useful. The walls are so paper thin I can hear everything, and I mean everything, from next door.
- The in room dining menu was terrible, and I wasn’t hungry anyway, and was really tired from only getting 5 hrs sleep the night before, so I retired very early.
Food
- BA lounge:
- grapefruit juice
- yoghurt with cereal and dried fruit
- cherry fruit cake
- BA snack:
- BA lunch:
- Lobster with Pink Grapefruit and Mango Salsa
- Fresh Seasonal Salad Served with Vinaigrette
- Fillet of Sole with Baby Carrots, Gem Lettuce and Lemon Cream Sauce
- Chocolate Cherry Trifle with Strawberry Sauce
- BA snack:
- Artichoke and Asparagus Salad with Classic Vinaigrette
- Fruit Scones served Warm with Clotted Cream and Strawberry Preserve
- Strawberry and Pastry Cream Tartlet
- Green Tea
- chocolate chip cookie
Buffalo -> Toronto -> London
Highlight
- Last day, at last. As expected, they got my laundry bill wrong, but then they didn’t end up charging me for breakfast anyway. It took ages to fix everything up, but I believe it’s all sorted now.
- Sun is out again, but it’s on the cold side than before.
- Not as crazy as the rest of the week has been, went to some actually meaningful meetings.
- Actually got to sit down to lunch for once. Had the clam chowder which was not that great. Note to self, stop listening to Lee San.
- Had a really great stir-fry at the BA Lounge at Toronto, probably the best Chinese food I’ve had for a long time!
- Alas, didn’t get entertainment on demand again. The movies were crap and I tried to sleep, but couldn’t for very long. At least there was no delays getting back, not counting the customs line.
Food
- Hyatt breakfast:
- porridge with dried fruit and nut
- poppy seed and sour cream cake
- fresh fruit
- clam chowder
- BA lounge:
- brie, Leicester blue with cracker, dried apple, berries
- cheesecake
- mixed salad
- Thai green curry stir-fry with chicken and tofu
- clam chowder
- BA snack:
- hot chocolate with warm chocolate chip cookie
- BA breakfast:
- fruist smoothie
- raspberry yoghurt
- fresh seasonal fruit
- warm bacon roll with tomato ketchup
- croissant
Buffalo-> Toronto -> London
Highlight
- Finally, the last day. It started off badly. I couldn’t sleep and woke up early.
- As usual they got my dry cleaning bill wrong so I had to redo it.
- At least it didn’t rain and I lugged my suitcase to work.
- Andrew did his normal annoying thing so I walked out of a meeting with him. Well, he wasn’t physically there so I didn’t’ really walk out.
- We had donuts and brownies and cookies today, so I ate a lot to cheer myself up.
- Nothing much happened, spent another fun lunch with Vince gossiping about work.
- Said goodbye to everyone and went to catch my ride. It was the same quiet driver again, so I actually managed to read and sleep on the ride back, which had absolutely no traffic.
- I got to the BA lounge before 5pm, so had heaps of time to enjoy the good food again. The variety was totally different to last time and very yummy as usual.
- Well, I finally got entertainment on demand, so I watched the beginning of The Reader that I missed before, and then watched Milk, which was very good actually. I also managed to get through about 1/3 of Bride Wars, which was actually not as bad as I thought – possibly because it was set in NYC and I could try to reconginse all the places I’ve been to.
- The service though, was terrible. I didn’t eat food but asked for hot chocolate, which they didn’t even deliver. I waited and waited, and finally I had to ask. It turns out that they gave my hot chocolate to someone else?!?!
- They also didn’t have my coat ready when we got off so I had to wait around while they got it and missed the first connecting bus. Luckily there was no line and we landed on time, so I managed to get home just after 8am, using the iris scan of course.
Food
- Hyatt breakfast:
- yoghurt with dried fruit and nuts
- blueberry muffin
- fresh fruit
- clam chowder
- chocolate brownie
- BA lounge:
- boccochini and tomato salad
- tuna and bean salad
- Caesar salad
- tortellini with alfredo sauce, vegetable, sausage and chicken
- lemon slice
- brie, Leicester and blue with fruit and crackers
- BA snack:
- hot chocolate with warm chocolate chip cookie
- BA breakfast:
- fruist smoothie
- fresh seasonal fruit
- warm bacon roll with tomato ketchup
- croissant
Buffalo
Highlight
- The weather didn’t improve at all, so I caught the tram to the office.
- Back to the boring breakfast buffet.
- Tried to do some more slave labour of rules entering but then got so bored. I was relieved to be going to meetings.
- Was going to head to Papaya again, but instead headed to the Saigon Café (where I paid again of course). The food there was actually not bad, well, seems better than the crap from London, or maybe my taste has been demented.
Food
- Hyatt breakfast:
- porridge with dried fruit and nuts
- bran muffin
- fresh fruit
- Grilled Chicken Ranch Wrap
- chocolate coated strawberry
- grapefruit juice
- The Saigon Café dinner:
- coconut juice ($2.95)
- Crispy Calamari ($5.95)- Tempura calamari rings served with tangy Thai tamarind sauce
- Chicken Satay ($4.95) - 3 Skewers marinated in Thai herb, charbroiled and served with peanut sauce
- Vietnamese Pancake ($6.95) - Crispy Vietnamese Pancake stuffed with shrimp, pork, onions, bambooo shoots, bean sprouts, scallions over a bed of lettuce, sweet basil leaves, and sweet garlic sauce
- Pattaya Catfish ($13.95) - Fillet catfish tempura, stir fried with lemon grass, onion,red and green peppers, scallions, and basil leaves in house special chili lemon grass with a touch of coconut milk
Buffalo
Highlight
- Used my full breakfast coupon so I didn’t have to eat the same bland stuff again.
- Got stuck doing the stupid data entry again. I can’t believe it, I hate this job.
- Stayed very late entering the rules, but the gym was so full I didn’t even stay for long. There was no space to even do testing.
- Went with Fred and Vince to another barbeque place. The ribs were really nice and the other meat decent, but I think I am beginning to get tired of all the American food.
- The weather has turned bad again, it was bucketing down when we left.
Food
- Hyatt breakfast:
- crab cake egg benedict
- orange juice
- mixed salad
- cranberry and grape juice
- Fat Bobs dinner:
- 2 meat platter with Memphis Pulled Pork Butt and St. Louis Pork Ribs
- Sweet Potato Fries
- Cornbread
- Great Lakes Conways Irish Red
Buffalo
Highlight
- Well, AS is back to work so I had another frustrating and annoying day. Luckily I was able to arrange a few conference calls with IT without AS’s presence, so I actually learnt something.
- Had a nice meal for lunch afterall.
- Found out that Fred is here so at least there is a few more people to socialise with.
- Went to the gym, didn’t do much, but made it to the monthly Hyatt party, where I met the travel relations manager and a whole bunch of frequent travellers. Good thing was that now I have a lot of contacts if I have a problem with my room or if I want some company. We had quite a good time just chatting, and Fred joined us as well.
Food
- Hyatt breakfast:
- yoghurt with dried fruit and nuts
- orange juice
- blueberry bagel with cream cheese
- fresh fruit
- Spanish Pork Chops with Refried Beans and Roasted Corn
- Cinco de Mayo party:
- tacos
- tortilla chips with guacamole, sour cream, salsa
- cheese tortilla
- margarita
New York -> Buffalo
Highlight
- It was still raining this morning when I stepped out. Luckily my flight wasn’t delayed as a result.
- Managed to check into the Hyatt (they gave me a noisy and disabled room even though I asked for a quiet one) and made it to work before 9am. The slow check-in chick in training didn’t help matters.
- Luckily work was not v busy as it was public holiday in both UK and HK.
- Nothing at all to eat for lunch, so I had a chilli.
- Everyone has been banned from travel this week, so there is absolutely nobody in Buffalo. I managed to make it to the gym for once, and then just had a quiet, but very nice dinner (especially the crème brulee) at EB Greens. I don’t know why no one likes EB Green.
Food
- orange and cranberry muffin
- Jamba Juice Pomegranate Pick Me Up - A healthy Smoothie made with Promogranate Juice, Mixed Berry Juice, Real Whole Strawberries and Blueberries, Raspberry Sherbet
- chilli with biscuits
- EB Green's:
- garlic bread
- house salad with blue cheese, walnuts and mandarin
- Queen Size Prime Rib 16 oz with baked potato
- Crème Brule
New York
Highlight
- The rain didn’t let down at all, and it was so miserable out. We didn’t head out until after 11am, and the first place we visited was the Buttercup Cake Shop. There was not too huge a selection of cupcakes and other desserts, but everything looked super nice. I ordered half a dozen to go, and they were very yummy.
- Tried very hard to get money out of the ATM and only just managed. I don’t know why I have been having all these problems with my card.
- Went to a huge Johnston and Murphy store but couldn’t find that bag anywhere. At least I tried.
- Went over to MoMa since today is definitely a museum day. Unfortunately they wouldn’t let me in unless I had photo ID, and I didn’t want to pay the $20 entry fee when it could be free.
- Giving up on that, made a long track to the Met. I got distracted along the way actually, and went to look at the futuristic Guggenheim instead. Unfortunately most of the space was being renovated or closed, so I finished there in about ½ hour. Luckily I didn’t have to pay the $15 entry fee. There were a few gems among the collection though the $3 I paid for the audio guide probably wasn’t worth it.
- Tried to get into the …. But it wasn’t free. They did have an excellent gift shop though so I spent some time on that.
- Finished up at the quite excellent Jewish Museum. The displays were very informative and great. I managed to finish the 4th floor and most of the 3rd floor only though.
- Took the very long subway ride home. It must be the dire weather, as I managed to have a subway carriage all to myself and took a picture of it as evidence.
- We stayed in and ordered Oaxacan for dinner. The great thing about NYC is that you can get all sorts of great stuff for take-out. The food was actually quite expensive and you don’t get much, but at least it tasted very good.
Food
- jerk chicken, rice and beans, mixed vegetables
- Jerk Leg of Lamb – boneless leg of lamb stuffed with Jamaican jerk spices and roasted to a spicy climax.
- The Buttercup Bake Shop cupcakes:
- Red Velvet - yellow cupcake with a hint of cocoa, dyed a deep beautiful red (tastes like a light chocolate cake). Frosted with cream cheese icing
- Lady Baltimore - An almond-flavoured white cupcake filled with coconut, candied cherries, cookie crumbs and almonds. Frosted with meringue and topped with coconut, cookie crumble and a cherry
- Sour Cream Spice - A dense cupcake packed with all your favourite spices, filled with walnuts and raisins. Frosted with cream cheese icing.
- hot chocolate
- Chilies and Chocolate Oaxacan Kitchen:
- corn chips
- Mole Negro chicken ($18) Made from dried chiles, chocolate, sesame seeds, plantain, and tomatoes, served with rice
- Rubbed Meat with Pork, salad and guacamole, wrapped in tortilla
Buffalo -> New York
Highlight
- Got up really early to catch my flight, but everything went smoothly and there was no delay.
- I decided to catch the Air Train instead of the local bus since East NY is supposed to be a rough area so it was best not to look like a tourist there.
- The subway system was so antiquated, even worst than London or Sydney. They don’t have indicator boards telling you where the trains are going and when the next train is. The signs for the station are really small and you can’t see, and the subway is dirty and old.
- Somehow I was on some express service (that I didn’t know about) and it didn’t stop at the station I wanted, so I had to back paddle and wasted 20 minutes in the process, since the subway was so infrequent.
- Took 1.5 hours to get to Helen’s place, and costs me $9.
- We hung around her apartment and met her flatmate and generally caught up. We were waiting for her friend to come and meet us and for that horrible rain to die down before we went out.
- Well, we didn’t end up heading out until 3pm, and by that time it seemed the sun has decided to come out. This also meant that there was a huge line of people who just seemed to have materialised to go to the Cherry Blossom Festival in the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens.
- Before we joined the huge line, we stopped off to pick up some delicious The Jamaican takeaway of jerk chicken and a huge pile of rice.
- We waited in line for ½ hour, but found out we could have skipped it with our employee free pass.
- Finally we were able to witness a whole swamp of weirdos all dressed up in manga character, people in kimonos, and every mum dad and dog all admiring the cherry blossoms that were in full bloom.
- Stopped by the street trolley for some “Italian ice” and then took the long subway ride out to dinner.
- Dressler was very busy, and we were squashed into a little space. I was not that impressed with the menu as it was very typical American and not at all imaginative. I ended up having 2 entrees as I was still full from my 3pm lunch. The food though was excellent, especially the smoky sauce in my ribs.
- We finished pretty early since there was another table after us and we were absolutely stuffed.
- Went to hang out at the Lower East Side, first to Mason Dixon, the only bar in NYC with a mechanical bull. We watched for 2 hrs everyone getting on and getting thrown off.
- Then off to Fat Baby, another bar on the hip Rivington St area, where I had a beer and we got chatted up by a bunch of weirdos.
- Called it a night around 12:30, and then had to take a long subway ride home, so I didn’t sleep until 2am.
Food
- raisin bagel with cream cheese
- hot chocolate
- The Islands lunch:
- jerk chicken, a Jamaican delight. Spicy delicious chicken baked with this unique combination of spices from the island, rice and beans, mixed vegetables ($10)
- plantains ($3)
- rainbow Italian ice
- Dressler dinner:
- BBQ St Louis Ribs ($14)
- Bourbon Glaze Pan Roasted Diver Scallops ($15) – Stoneround Grits, Salsify, Wild Mushrooms and White Truffle Oil
- Troegs Hop Back Amber Ale ($7)
- Blue Light beer
